Seafood a l’Armoricaine
Get ready to savor the flavors of Seafood à l’Armoricaine, a special Brittany-style seafood bisque.
This recipe is not to be confused with Seafood Sauce Américaine (the famous ‘Mother’ sauce) that requires a bit of fuss to make. The name "l'Armoricaine" pays homage to the old Brittany identity, which means this dish has origins in this charming coastal region. Now, while these sauces are similar, you’ll be pleased to hear that this recipe involves a nifty shortcut – using a seafood bisque as a base with some basic ingredients added to achieve the same rich taste of Sauce Américaine without the hassle. The result? A delicious, soul-satisfying seafood extravaganza that's very easy to make.
INGREDIENTS
For 4 people
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 40 minutes
Raw Blue swimmer crabs, or 500 g prawns
2 tbsp olive oil
30 ml (1 fl oz) cognac
2 finely diced shallots
2 tbsp finely sliced carrot
1 tbsp finely sliced celery
100 ml (3.3 fl oz) white wine
Half a tbsp tomato puree
2 bay leaves
Branch of thyme
2 cloves garlic, pressed in a garlic press
1 canned of whole peeled tomatoes (chopped)
500 g (1 lb) quality store bought seafood bisque
Salt and pepper to season
50 ml (1.7 ml) heavy cream
½ tsp Espelette pepper (from French Basque country)
20 ml (1 ½ tbsp) white vermouth (Noily Prat)
2 handfuls fresh mussels
800 g (1.7 lb) (firm white fish (monkfish, cod or similar)
Handful parsley, or dill, to garnish
Slices of lemon, to garnish
MISE EN PLACE
Wash and scrub the mussels to remove any grit stuck to the shells. Cut off the hairlike seaweed protruding from the clasp of the mussel, known as the beard.
Prepare other seafood as required: clean and trim the fish fillets. Clean and crack open the crabs, removing the gills, then cut them into manageable pieces.
Method
In a large sauté pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the crab and sauté until it turns a deep red color, about 5 minutes. Once done, carefully pour in the cognac and ignite it (with the exhaust fan off) to flambe the crab while gently swirling the pan. Remove the crab from the pan and set it aside.
In the same pan, add the shallots, carrots, and celery. Cook for 2 minutes in the remaining crab cooking juices. Deglaze the pan with the wine and allow the liquid to reduce until the ingredients are almost dry. Stir in the tomato puree, ensuring it is well combined with the other ingredients. Add the bay leaves, thyme, and garlic, mixing them thoroughly before adding the tomatoes. Let the mixture cook for 2 minutes.
Next, pour in half of the seafood bisque into the pan, stirring to combine it with the ingredients. Add a little water to thin out the sauce's consistency before adding the rest of the bisque.
Return the cooked crab to the sauce, season with salt and pepper, and allow it to simmer covered for 10 minutes to infuse the flavors.
When done, remove the main pieces of crab from the sauce and set them aside on a plate. Pass the sauce through a sieve into a container to remove any solids, then return the sauce to the pan. Place it over medium-low heat and stir in the cream, followed by the Espelette pepper and white vermouth. Bring the sauce to a gentle simmer.
When ready, add the mussels to the sauce and cook for about 6 minutes until they open up. Once done, remove the mussels from the sauce and reduce the heat to low.
Now add the fish to the sauce, cooking gently for about 5 minutes until the fish is half cooked. Then, return the mussels and crab to the sauce and leave to cook covered for a further 5 to 10 minutes until the fish is cooked through.
Carefully pour the sauce into a large, deep serving dish. Decoratively arrange the seafood in the sauce and garnish with fresh parsley and lemon slices. Enjoy this delicious Seafood à l’Armoricaine with some toasted baguette and a side of boiled rice or boiled potatoes. Bon appétit!
TIP
This dish can be made with a combination of fish, crabs, crayfish, langoustine, and prawns or with just jumbo prawns.